U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,901,421; 3,994,425; 4,039,106 and 4,345,705 disclose bicycle carriers adapted for mounting on the roof or deck lid of an automobile and which utilize a pair of upwardly opening channels mounted in relatively parallel relation on a pair of cross frame members for receiving the wheels of the bicycles, and an upwardly extending bicycle support frame mounted on the pair of cross frame members intermediate the channels for engaging and supporting a pair of bicycles resting in the two wheel receiving channels. In U.S. Pat. No. 4,345,705, the bicycle support frame is foldable to a level adjacent the wheel receiving channels to allow the vehicle to be driven into low overhead areas such as a garage, without requiring removal of the carrier from the vehicle.
The bicycle support frames in each of the above patents are mounted on the pair of cross frame members and each support frame is arranged to support a pair of bicycles. However, there are applications where a carrier for a single bicycle or for an odd number of bicycles is desired. Further, in the above carriers, the support frame is attached to the pair of cross frame members and the bicycle wheel receiving channels were independently attached to the cross frame members so that locating the support frame in proper relation to the wheel receiving channels required insertion of the fasteners through the proper holes in the cross frame members. The bicycle carriers are commonly shipped and sold in a disassembled condition to reduce the size of the shipping containers and the purchasers could become confused and assemble the support frame and/or wheel receiving channels in the wrong holes in the cross frame members.